Romanticism vs Realism - 2268 Words

Cast of Madame Bovary: A Study of Realism and Romanticism Through the Characters of the Novel Gustave Flaubert is considered one of the most influential novelists of the Realist period. His most famous work, Madame Bovary, earned both heavy criticism and fame for its controversial style and mockery of Romanticism. The novel itself even went to trial, being banned for a while due to immorality (Various, 1). Many elements commonly found in Romantic novels were criticized and, to an extent, parodied in Madame Bovary. This stems from Flaubert having a cynical view of others, as well as a generally pessimistic outlook on life that was influenced by a young philosopher, Alfred Le Poittevin, who he met at an early age (Barzun, 1). This paper†¦show more content†¦They quickly foster a powerful relationship that could easily become more passionate, but Emma pushes him away. In her mind, she was being a good wife, and was possibly pursuing the Romantic ideal of the love that could never be (like Romeo and Juliet). Despite his advances, Emma pushes Leon away, and finally he lea ves for Paris to pursue his career. Leon still pines for Emma, however, and, later in the novel, he has Emma visit him. An affair forms from these visits, one that Leon’s superiors at work do not approve of, as Flaubert made clear throughout its course. As this new subplot continues, their passion, which was feverishly strong at the beginning of the affair begins to wane and they both find faults and problems with the relationship. As Emma struggles to work out her debts from constantly buying luxuries that she can’t possibly afford, even asking Leon to pawn off some silverware her father gave her, he began to question her actions. In the end, however, what finally separated them was Leon growing up. He was quite good at his job and was moving up in the world. Eventually Emma’s constant sobs and cries bored him, he grew tired of the constant sadness and suffering, and even their sex became boring for him. When Emma sought him out for money directly, even trying to push him to steal from his office, he fashioned a lie to get away from her, and left her forever. Leon’s Romantic way of thinking originally came from boredomShow MoreRelatedHuckleberry Finn: Realism vs. Romanticism1010 Words   |  5 PagesHuckleberry Finn: Realism vs. Romanticism The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, mainly takes place on the Mississippi River, as Huck and Jim pursue their freedom. They persevere through many obstacles and learn life lessons along the way. Twain uses these characters to depict the significance of friendship over societys moral structure. He demonstrates characteristics of both Romanticism and Realism in his novel to express his ideas of that time period. Romanticism is based on theRead MoreRomanticism vs. Realism Essay848 Words   |  4 PagesThe main ideas of the period of Romanticism were largely based on self expression, free will and the ability to act on that will, spontaneity, individualism and the prospect to shape your own life. The thoughts of the realists pertained to more concrete aspects of the here and now and emphasize that the things that matter are unavoidable truths. In the Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, his ideas of human potential and self exploration towards becoming par t of the proclaimed freedoms andRead More Realism vs. Romanticism in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay2595 Words   |  11 Pages     Ã‚   Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic tale â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† is a good example of a short story embodying both characteristics of realism and characteristics of romanticism. M. H. 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